


The Red Thief Who Has My Heart

by Angelicat2



Series: Red and Black Paladins (Robin Hood au) [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fae, Alternate Universe - Magic, Blood and Injury, Fae Keith (Voltron), Fire Powers, Gay Disaster Keith (Voltron), Hurt Keith (Voltron), Protective Shiro (Voltron), Robin Hood AU, Shiro (Voltron) is a Good Friend, Vigilante Keith (Voltron), hybrid keith
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-01
Updated: 2019-09-01
Packaged: 2020-10-04 12:43:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,796
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20471231
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Angelicat2/pseuds/Angelicat2
Summary: Keith is the Red Paladin who steals from the rich and gives it to the poor. His best friend, Shiro, has no idea about that until the day one of Keith's missions goes wrong.





	The Red Thief Who Has My Heart

Keith rushed over the cactus threatening to make him trip.

Glancing back as he held his bundle close to his chest, he ran through the rocky hills faster than most. He was always a speedy kid, and it wasn’t any different when he grew older. At twenty-one, he was even more athletic, agile, and determined. Where most got caught, he went on, always just a bit faster than them. 

It’s how he earned his title, after all. The Red Paladin, all speed and fire and destruction. A demon for the rich, an angel for the poor. 

He clenched the heavy sack of golden coins tighter to his chest as he leaped over a small canyon, many feet wide. In air for only seconds, he landed again before moving on like a wildfire, leaving all the chaos behind him. He could hear horses thundering behind him, but he paid no mind as he whipped around the nearest corner, ducking within the tiny cave inside that he had stumbled upon when he was a little boy. It hid him in a shadow of darkness, blanketing out the blood red clothing he wore. He grabbed his mother’s dagger, holding it defensively, willing and ready to attack if anyone were to discover him. The thundering of hooves got closer and closer as he waited, daring not to breathe.

They came closer and closer as Keith tensed.

Closer…

Closerrr….

Neighs could be heard as their saddles clanked.

Closerrrrrr…….

And then blurs of color sped by him, browns and yellows and silver and black and red. All kinds of horses and soldiers rushed by in a frantic, angry mob. Keith stayed in place, waiting as the ruckus fled on by. When he could no longer hear them, he crawled out of the cave, taking off for the direction he just came. There was a small town nearby, filled with warm and kind-hearted people who deserved this gold a lot more than the rich people he stole them from. People who could use this gold for food, water, medicine, their home, their _families._ People who worked hard for almost nothing. People who had been like his pops, always out helping others when he was living in a broken, worthless shack of a building.

Rushing forward, he went by a familiar path. He knew this would lead him back to the outskirts of the town. 

As he went to each home, he dropped off two handfuls of coins right where he knew no one else would find them besides the owners of the homes. He wasn’t that friendly with the town’s people, but he made it a point to always know where to place the gold so the soldiers would never find it and get mad at the people. He wanted to help them, not make things worse. With gold, they were unable to be tracked down by the rich. 

Besides, he had Lance for that...the whole socializing thing was weird. He’d rather be spending time with his wolf and his best fri-

Speaking of him, Keith skidded to a stop as said man stared at him in shock. The man’s white bangs fluttered before his dark grey eyes that were wide open. His black long-sleeved shirt clung to him just right, showing off the muscles in his chest and arms. He looked a little tired, and like he was leaving home. Keith peeked around the man's shoulder, using his extra sensitive senses to smell into the house.

Old furniture...old blankets...dust...sand...stale bread…

Not much else. Shiro must have been out of food again. Keith frowned as watched the other man. 

Shiro was his best friend...and he didn’t know about what Keith got up to. He had no idea that he was the one standing before him.

“Uhhh,” Shiro glanced from him to the desert landscape behind him before smiling, “Hey.”

“Hi,” Keith responded back, infinitely glad for the voice-scrambler in his mask, “I have something for you.”

“For me?” Shiro asked with raised eyebrows, pinched in a way Keith could stare at for hours, “What is it?”

Keith didn’t say as he held out his hands, giving Shiro a small sack filled with three handfuls of the golden coins. It was more than enough to survive off of. It was bound to last him for weeks if not months. The older's eyes landed on the bag, already guessing what was inside. Keith had quite a reputation. 

"I...you didn't have to," Shiro spoke as he opened the pouch. A shiny gold piece slipped into his hand, "This is far more than I deserve."

"You work hard for little in return," Keith scowled before his stance loosened, "You do deserve it. I wouldn't give it to you otherwise."

"I...thank you," Shiro smiled softly at him before stepping closer to his home, glancing back at Keith, "Do you want to come in? I can make a sandwich for you. You're bound to be hungry."

He was, but he could get it from his group when he returned to them. 

"It's probably better if I leave," Keith shrugged nonchalantly before gazing at the other, "I don't want them finding me here."

_I want to keep you safe._

"Oh, yeah," Shiro nodded before he grinned sheepishly, as adorable as ever, "Probably a good idea. I'll see you around sometime?"

"Yeah," Keith breathed out softly as he started stepping backwards to leave, "I'll...uhhh...see you around."

Just then, he sensed his wolf beginning to appear by his side. Grabbing onto the animal's thick fur, Keith stared at Shiro as the wolf quickly flashed out again, dragging Keith with him.

And then he was gone, no longer on the outskirts of the town but now in their hideout. The Castle of Lions wasn't quite home, but he never really liked placing that in a building. Petting the beautiful blue wolf, he laughed as he removed his mask, pressing his forehead to the light blue tuft of fur on his head. Glowing yellow eyes watched him as a blue-pink tongue licked at his chin.

"I know," Keith snickered as he tossed his mostly empty bag down into the pile they normally had. Keith always kept just enough for the others, a small handful to help them with food and other expenses. When the other four got back, they'd do the same. As it was, Keith plopped down onto the dirty white sofa in the corner, arms crossed and in thought.

He'd see Shiro soon as himself, but he couldn't risk going back as the Red Paladin. The one encounter they had could have put him in danger anyway. 

A weight landed on his legs as he came out of his thoughts. His wolf stared at him with his head tilted curiously before poofing away. A moment went by before he returned with a big white shirt, one that had been Shiro's...dang it, he had to return it some time. 

"Thanks, boy," Keith grabbed it before pressing it to his chest. It still smelled like Shiro, all dusty and storm cloudy. Relaxing into the couch, he stared at the wall, running his fingers through silky fur. 

…..

"Look what we have here!"

Keith cried out as a sword slashed through his right cheek, practically blinding him as pain blurred his vision. His mask’s mouthpiece fell out as blood soaked into the ground at his feet, coating the destroyed red and white device. He nearly toppled over into the hard brick wall on his side, but jumped up just in time to avoid it. Ducking to the side, he narrowly missing the blade again, clenching his own as he threw the bag of coins onto his hip. Glaring at the soldier who smirked wickedly at him, he paused to catch his breath. Hot liquid dripped from his cheek to his chin and onto the ground.

“Is the little Red Paladin tired already?” The brown-haired man around his age rolled his eyes before stepping closer, “I thought you were more of a challenge than this. You’re said to be one of the more dangerous of your group. But looks like I beat you. Too bad we gotta haul you in to be charged and executed. We’d have even more fun if we could drag you out into the desert and let you slowly starve to death.”

“Not going to happen,” Keith growled back with a low voice, deeper than normal with added emotion. His Galra side must have been coming out. Frowning, Keith glanced around before seeing the others further away, still coming. The other man took a step closer, raising his sword to strike him, believing him to be distracted. Keith yanked out his dagger just in time to reflect the blow as sparks flew between them. Not waiting anymore, Keith pushed all his weight onto the other, ducking low before smashing the handle of his blade onto the other’s head. The man crumbled quickly as Keith held a cloth up to his face.

It wasn’t long before the blood began soaking through the worn cloth. Keith quickly adjusted the bag of metal onto his back before rushing off into the desert. Long minutes passed as his head began to spin from his injury. The pain was at a constant burning throb. He wished he could rest, but it couldn’t happen right now. Just as he thought that, he came to a sudden halt. Before him lay a chasm deep into the earth, filled with water that flowed rapidly. The river hadn’t been there the day before, and Keith cursed in his head as he glanced around for a way out of there. 

There was none. He was too spent to go around...he couldn’t go back because he’d be seen...he couldn’t stay here though...and he couldn’t put the money back because they’d keep hunting him anyway.

Before he could completely map out what he would do, something slammed into him, pushing him over the edge of the canyon and into the rushing water. Gasping out as pain struck his back, Keith didn’t have time to think as he was suddenly thrown below mucky waters, air gone and world black with muddy sands. When he breached the surface, he gagged on air, getting shoved back down with the current. 

He grew weaker and weaker as the water thrashed him around like a toy. He could barely get enough breath to stay awake, and the heavy bag was not helping that much. He’d rather keep the bag then let it go though. There were people who needed these. People who he could give some comfort.

And then he was on the shoreline, laying half in the water with silky sand rubbing against his burning cheek. Wet rushed into his mouth but he sat up just a little, coughing up the water he had accidentally inhaled. Trying to get up...he had to get moving or they’d find him...but he was shaking like a leaf, too drained to get anywhere. He dragged himself forward sluggishly, crawling on his hands and knees for about three feet before collapsing on his chest, head flopping onto his bad cheek as his vision blacked out on the edges. Before he could try to move again, a dark black boot appeared in his vision as someone stepped up to his side. Keith stared up at the other person, seeing a blurry shadow of a man.

They found him. He was going to die. They’d get rid of him and it won’t be a painless death...

He gave into the pain and fear and hurt, passing out before the man could even get his hands on him.

…..

Shiro stared down at the man in front of him. It was the one from a few months ago. The man had caught Shiro off guard when he had been ready to go get some breakfast from his home. He had just been about to leave, worried that his place had almost no food left, and he didn’t have the money for any. He worked at one of the mansions in the town, being a guard. But that didn’t mean he was paid very well...barely enough to survive much less be comfortable.

So when he had caught the red vigilante in his yard, he had been amazed. He knew of the man. He was the one who supposedly gave back to the poor. He had been draped in red so dark it looked like wine with a two-part mask that covered almost all of his face. Two blades sat at him hip, one a three-foot sword that matched his outfit and one of dark metal, glowing a little bit and oddly familiar. He was surprised that he had seen the Red Paladin in his place, giving him gold to live on.

And here he was now, clearly not okay. The other looked up at him with defeated eyes as he slumped onto the ground. Shiro hissed as he saw the arrow sticking out of the younger’s body, right where his shoulder blade was. It couldn’t have gone far into his skin, or he’d be dead already. Just as the thought left him, he saw the man let out a pained huff as his eyes slid shut, body going slack.

He rushed up to the other, carefully gazing at the arrow before pressing closer. He didn’t want to take the arrow out because the wound would bleed...but if he didn’t, the sharp tip could hit something vital if wiggled around any. So he quickly made up his mind, grabbing onto the wooden weapon before snaking it out of the man. Like he guessed, the thing came out easily, just a bit of scarlet on the tip. The bag on his back likely saved him from a more serious injury, material torn in a line where the arrow had cut through it. Flipping the man onto his back, he carefully brushed his hand over the wounded right cheek that was caked full of wet sand, still bleeding enough to coat his fingers in red. That was not good. It would become infected if he didn’t treat it soon.

Slipping the bag off of the other’s shoulders, he didn’t hesitate to remove his shirt before slipping the bag on. Marching to the river made in the night by flash floods, he glared down at the weapon, dropping it into the roaring water before turning back to the other. A little spreading stain was growing on the other’s back, darker red in the worn, scarlet fabric but Shiro wasn’t too worried as he pressed his dark grey shirt to his wound.

A tiny sound came from the man, but other than that, he didn’t move.

Lifting the man up into his arms, Shiro rushed to his house. He didn’t live that far away, only out for a walk when he had stumbled upon the other washed up on shore. He didn’t rush across anyone on the way, so he got into his home in less than ten minutes. Practically slamming his way into the house, he rested the man against the scrappy couch in the living room, frowning as he rummaged through his cabinet. Luckily, he had bought some bandages and gauze from the gold the other had given him. Grabbing them, he gripped the salve container in his other hand before going back to the man.

Brushing away ebony locks that clung to his mask, Shiro sat the younger up before placing the gauze on his back wound, pressing hard onto it to stem the blood flow. The man’s soft breath tickled his shoulder softly as Shiro waited. Minutes passed before he risked pulling away from the wound, happy when only a small stain showed through. Laying the other back onto the couch, he carefully cleaned out the wound on his face.

It would be okay, but it was going to scar. It was amazing that he had survived what looked like a sword to the face. If not for his missing mouth mask part, he’d have been severely injured. As it was, Shiro had to help him out. He was bound to be in pain. Putting the dirty, bloody rag aside, he rubbed some salve on it. The stuff smelled bad, but it was something Allura always gave him for his scars and wounds. When it wasn’t a healing medicine, it worked well for relaxing his muscles. 

The man mumbled softly under his breath, something Shiro couldn’t understand. Frowning, he gazed at him before quickly checking the back wound. 

Slowing before his eyes, scarlet bled into purple as the blood dried on the bandage. Shiro's heart thumped loudly before he hurried to remove the cloth on the unconscious man's cheek. The wound was also turning purple where it was drying, red simmering like a pool of lava as his cheek healed. Painstakingly slow, the skin stitched itself back together. 

There was only one person whose blood did this. Whose skin healed like this with the salve.

"Keith?" Shiro choked out in shock before he tenderly rubbed his best friend's cheek, over the healed and scarred wound. Keith was half human, half fae. It was the reason why his blood turned violet and why his body naturally healed itself like fire...no, because real fire coursed through his veins. Glancing down, he saw that familiar dagger again, the glowing one Keith always had on him. The one from his mom.

Any doubt was erased when the younger made a small whining sound, one Shiro only heard around one person ever.

"Keith!" Shiro cried out as he removed the younger's mask, throwing it onto the table carelessly. Keith’s eyes flicked around under his eyelids slowly as Shiro held him close. This explained a few things. He had thought that Keith had spent all that time off with his mother. Krolia was full fae, off doing something Shiro wasn’t sure about. But now, he knew, “Keith! Come on! Wake up! Buddy, please.”

“Nhhhnnn,” the younger groaned as his lips dipped down in a frown, “Shhh’rr.”

“That’s it, Keith,” Shiro laughed softly before pressing his forehead to his best friend’s forehead, “Come to me, Keith. I’m right here.”

“Shir,” Keith moaned again before his eyes slipped open slowly. His slightly shrunken, dark violet eyes gazed at him, sclera a pretty golden color. Keith panted softly, sharp fangs pointing out of his mouth as his tongue darted out to lick his dry lips. The younger blinked a few times before he gazed at Shiro with full awareness.

“Sh’ro?”

“Yeah, it’s me,” Shiro grinned fondly as he wrapped his arm around Keith, “You’re okay, Keith.”

“I...the river…” Keith suddenly went stiff, staring at his arm in shock, no doubt understanding that Shiro now knew he was the Red Paladin, “Sorry. I should...you can’t know…”

“Why not?” Shiro frowned as the younger refused to look at him. Pressing his hand to the other’s chin, he pushed Keith’s head to look at him. Beautiful eyes stared at him with glistening fear, “Keith, I’m not mad. I could never be. I’m fine with you being fae, I’m okay with you being the Red Paladin.”

“But you’re in danger now,” Keith choked out as he stared at Shiro, still pressed to Shiro’s bare chest, ebony hair tickling his skin, “The soldiers will interrogate you if they find out you know. You could die.”

“But I won’t,” Shiro snickered quietly as he brushed his thumb over the other’s upper cheek, “You’ll be there to save me.”

“We save each other,” Keith grinned up at him before his eyes slipped downward, widening slightly before he blinked, “Shiro, why...where is…”

“Oh, I accidentally forgot to put a shirt on. I used mine for your back wound,” Shiro rubbed his undercut sheepishly before going to reach over for a blanket nearby, “I can put something on-”

“No, it’s great...fine...good...You uhhh...look good,” Keith blinked before a purple blush covered his face...that was possible...Keith could blush purple…“It’s...you’re good.”

“Thanks, Keith,” the older smiled softly before he brushed one of Keith’s silky locks, now dry, “But I’ll be fine. I can take care of myself, and I know I’m never alone.”

“Yeah,” Keith relaxed as he rested his cheek against Shiro’s chest, skin warm like sunlight onto a smooth rock. He stared at one of the various scars on Shiro’s shoulder before a glow came to his eyes, “You can come with!”

“What?”

“We have a spot open,” Keith grinned slightly as he pressed closer to him, “We still need a Black Paladin. Allura would be happy. Pidge too.”

“Wait, you’re friends with Allura?” Shiro asked in shock before he shook his head, “I thought she was the witch-who-lives-in-an-isolated-cabin-in-the-mountains type.”

“Nah,” Keith shook his head, smirking, “Cover story. Although...she does live in the mountains for real.”

“That’s where your hideout is, isn’t it,” Shiro laughed as Keith shrugged a bit, “That’s where you hang out so much!”

“When I’m not with you,” the younger rolled his eyes before a yawn left his mouth, “No worries about that. I like you just as much.”

“Thanks, buddy,” Shiro snickered before he hugged the other closer, “But you’ll have to spend more time with me.”

“What?” Keith gazed at him with exhausted eyes, “Why?”

“Because I’m coming with you,” Shiro snickered as he pressed a small kiss to Keith’s forehead before pulling back a few inches, “I can’t leave you to wander around without me by your side. Besides...stealing from the rich and giving it to the poor? Sign me up. Can’t be any worse than guard duty.”

“Shiro,” Keith groaned tiredly before he grinned, pressing his face to the older’s sternum, “Still got your weird humor.”

“You love this weird humor of mine,” Shiro grinned down at the other before beginning to place the blanket over the other, “Now, we can share my bed if you want. You’re gonna be my personal heater tonight.”

“Yeah,” Keith smiled softly before sighing with deep contentedness, “That’s fine...as long as I get to be the big spoon.”

“You can be anything you want,” Shiro chuckled as he lifted the younger up, “Just get some sleep.”

“Okay,” Keith passed out, going limp. This time, Shiro didn’t have to worry as he hugged him close, taking him to his bedroom. Pressing his friend into the bed, he removed the younger’s jacket before sliding in before him. Waiting, Shiro grinned as he felt Keith latch onto him in his sleep, wrapping his lithe arms around his torso and his legs to Shiro’s own. Shiro shook his head happily before he drifted to sleep himself.


End file.
